Denny Hamlin Says He’s “Not In It Mentally” As He Competes For His First NASCAR Cup Series Championship

Well that could be a problem... It was a rough day at Kansas yesterday for Denny Hamlin. The driver of the #11 car for Joe Gibbs Racing had a decent car, but issues on pit road kept him from competing for the win. At one point Hamlin even thought his car was blowing up, but he ultimately brought home an 8th place finish and still remains 5th in the playoff standings, 11 points above the cut line with two races left in the second round. Hamlin is chasing his first ever NASCAR Cup Series championship, and as he reaches the final years of his career, there's no doubt the pressure is on to take home the trophy. He's won 54 races in his 20-year career, and will no doubt be a Hall of Famer when he retires. But right now, all the talk is about whether Hamlin can win that elusive championship. But unfortunately for Denny, his mind's just not in it. Hamlin made the shocking admission yesterday after the race while speaking with Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports: "I'm not in it mentally, I can tell you that. There's a lot of wires crossed and bolts loose at the moment. But what can you do? I'll just do the best I can to drive the car and, you know, do my part." Of course this may just be frustration from Denny over the pit road issues that forced him to keep having to try to drive through the field. A slow pit stop set him back at one point, and then on a later pit stop he had a loose wheel and was forced to come back to pit road, once again sending him to the back of the field. But Denny is a fierce competitor, so to hear him say that he's not in it mentally is a little surprising, especially given that his first career championship is on the line. And I'll admit, I've always been a Denny hater, but as he gets close to the end of his full-time racing career, it would be a shame if he retired and never won a championship. Hopefully he can get something figured out. https://twitter.com/bobpockrass/status/1840527085086843195